“Boom Bye Bye” is the title of a very popular song by reggae artist Buju Banton. It makes reference to the placement of a small piece of metal at very high velocity in the heads of men who find pleasure in the posterior of other men. It expresses very artistically Jamaica’s general opposition to homosexuality.

These are the last days, the closet is now full and they are bursting out. I wish I was making reference to clothing or the rotting skeletons in Eminem’s closet. Unfortunately, I make reference to the “the mud men”, “the strange men”, “the chi-chi men”, “dem bwoy deh”, “the gays”. No longer are they confined to the dark corners or the gullies, no longer do they remain silent in fear for their lives, they are bolder now. Bold enough to fight for their rights, bold enough to publicly express themselves, bold enough, to pull Portia’s tongue! Their reach is endless, they are everywhere!

For years I have wondered: Is homosexuality a sickness, or is it a choice? Is it a mental or genetic defect or is it a conscious decision? Can it be cured? The world is becoming overpopulated; is it nature’s way of controlling the population’s size? I have not been able to find an answer. Either way I believe sexual relations and marriages should be confined to a male and a female, the way God intended.

In such an anti-gay society, while majority of the residents are still very much opposed to the lifestyle, I have observed that the level of tolerance for homosexuality has increased. Back when I was in high school, there was an alleged homosexual in my class. In the first year of his enrollment at my school, he was attacked by the seniors with knives. His life was their aim but thankfully he survived the attack unharmed. There was another case more recently at The University of Technology where two males were caught making the beast with two backs roar. One was badly beaten by security. Now I see them everywhere on campus, not harmed, not attacked. This is a good thing, and while I oppose the lifestyle, I am happy about that. We do not have the right to harm anyone because of their beliefs, they should not be discriminated against or treated unfairly.

My big problem however is its impact on the younger ones and the negative influences it may have on them. We all know the recent case where the acceptance of homosexuality and the varying forms of sex was being taught to young children. I think that responsibility should rest as much as possible on the shoulders of the parents.

It took a long time for me to realize how pronounced homosexuality is in Jamaica. A very disturbing thing happened to me just now which influenced me to write this. I am all about networking, I find great value in meeting new people and engaging them as networking enhances the proliferation of businesses. A gentleman sent me a facebook friend request. We had a few mutual friends so I thought why not accept. Just one more person to whom I may send my links. Unfortunately, a funny thing happened. He sent me a message. No problem, I responded. He didn’t stop there he sent more day after day. I ignored them, giving him the benefit of the doubt. I took some screen shots and showed them to a friend and to her it was so clear that this guy was not okay. See the message thread below:

After the last message I asked him if he is gay. He did not answer. What do you think? Am I being paranoid? I clicked on his profile and realized he is a married man with children so probably I’m wrong, I hope I am. If I am not, why would he send ME of all persons those messages, the guy so straight that he’s brittle, the guys so straight you’d think he’s constantly planking, why me? This world is a scary place.

Finally I’m going to leave this text with you, please search and read it for yourself: Leviticus 18:22

– Aldeam Facey 2015